Executive Officers
President
Emily Honings
Emily Honings serves as the Director of Human Resources for Rate, where she supports multiple joint-venture entities across the organization. Before transitioning into Human Resources, Emily spent over a decade as a people leader in the fashion industry, holding leadership roles with iconic retailers such as Bloomingdale's and Tory Burch. Emily holds an Executive MBA from the University of Hawai'i and a Master of Science in Human Resources Management from the University of Southern California. She is also Lean Six Sigma Green Belt-Certified through Purdue University. Emily was also named one of The Top Women Leaders of Iowa for three consecutive years (2023, 2024 & 2025) by Women We Admire.
President-Elect
Sarah Brown
Sarah is currently the Human Resources Director at Kirkwood Community College and has worked in various Human Resources roles for ten years. She holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Iowa and a MBA- HR emphasis from Upper Iowa University. Sarah received her Society of Human Resource Management, Certified Professional in 2018. In 2020, Sarah was a recipient of the Corridor Business Journal’s 40 Under 40 award and has a passion for the corridor region. Sarah is married and has three children. She loves spending time with her family, dogs, friends, reading and being active with fitness.
Past-President
Lucas Sperfslage
Lucas serves as the Director of Human Resources for Dental Prosthetic Services. Bringing nearly eight years of experience to the role, he began his career as a Human Resources Business Partner and has since developed broad expertise across the profession. Lucas holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of Iowa and achieved his SHRM-SCP certification in April 2024. Outside of work, he enjoys exploring the outdoors, seeking new adventures, and spending quality time with family and friends.
Treasurer
Barb Schulte
Barb is the Sr. Manager, Human Resources with Kinze Manufacturing, Inc. and previously worked in the healthcare industry for 20+ years, starting in the finance department and transitioning into the HR Manager role where she built the HR department. Her passion in HR is strategic planning, developing systems and programs, analytics, compliance, and training. She has been a member of EIHRA since 2013, is SPHR and SHRM-SCP certified and has been on the EIHRA Board of Directors as Treasurer since 2020. She has lived in the Cedar Rapids area for most of her life and enjoys traveling and spending time with her family.
Secretary
Melinda Pollmeier
Melinda is the Director of Human Resources at Area Substance Abuse Council in Cedar Rapids. The majority of her 15+ year HR career has been spent working with non-profit social service organizations ranging in size from 100 – 1,000 employees. This, along with experience as outsourced HR and a large insurance company has provided her with a broad knowledge of HR and Benefits, though her favorite work is with employee relations. Melinda has a BS in Psychology from Iowa State and an MBA from Upper Iowa University, along with the PHR and SHRM-CP designations. Originally from SE Iowa, Melinda and her husband have lived in multiple locations in Iowa and Illinois and moved to Cedar Rapids in 2017. She likes to use her PTO to take cruises and go camping. In her other free time, she enjoys reading mysteries, buying too craft supplies projects that will likely never be finished, and attempting to train their four-legged puppy roommate. Melinda is looking forward to contributing to the EIHRA group and meeting other area professionals.
